1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to image capture apparatuses, and more particularly to charged capacitor switching devices and methods capable of increasing photographing distance and rapidly compensating for photographing intensity.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, when natural illumination is insufficient or environmental illumination is weak for photographing, for example, at night or in an indoor environment, a traditional camera or a digital camera uses a photoflash to provide supplementary illumination to an object to be photographed.
Conventionally, a photoflash incorporated in a camera usually includes one single capacitor and a device for facilitating the charging thereof. When being charged, the capacitor is provided for the photoflash to emit the auxiliary light for photographing. However, due to the single capacitor, the illumination from the auxiliary light of the photoflash is limited and it is difficult to control the actual exposure of the object to be photographed after the flash. This may result in an overexposed or underexposed photograph.
Specifically, for some conventional techniques, the object to be photographed is first captured without flash illumination before being photographed. Then, a pre-flash (or a preparatory flash) operation is performed on the object to be photographed using the photoflash, thereby capturing an image and obtaining corresponding parameters for the photoflash. Accordingly, the photographing operation is carried out with flash illumination. Meanwhile, according to conventional techniques, because the flash illumination is limited, the photographing quality may be underexposed and poor, as in cases wherein an object is located at a far distance or under a condition of weak environmental illumination. For an image capture apparatus used for outdoor recording of ecological activities, when the photographing operation is performed at night or the object to be photographed is located at a far distance, normally, auxiliary light emitted from the photoflash is insufficient. In addition, after carrying out a pre-flash procedure using the photoflash, it is necessary to once again charge the capacitor. Thus, an extra charging time is required, which is a substantial inconvenience for users.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide an improved image capture apparatus with charged capacitor switching functions for a photoflash to increase the capacity of capacitors supplied to the photoflash, thereby increasing photographing distance and decreasing delay time for charging of the capacitors.